A powerful historical film, as well as an allegory for any nation that grappled with a totalitarian past. Or flirts with one at present.

Luis Bunuel was obsessed with ritual and fetish, but he managed to harness them for his art; perhaps selecting embrace rather than denial is what saved him from self-destruction. Social conventions are part of the learned behaviors that members of a society use to relate to one another, but they can also become a languid…

Jean Gabin made a career out of playing damaged characters with good intentions, making him a natural for noir.

Sayid.

Now, with Playtime, I have settled on a murderous rage so complete that it’s bound to be as emotional as I’ll get over someone who’s long dead

Although Raging Bull will always hold the title among depressing boxing movies, Ralph Nelson’s 1962 downer Requiem for a Heavyweight holds its own quite nicely, refusing to give us a final triumph, or even a glimmer of hope of any kind. The film considers sad, pathetic Mountain Rivera (Anthony Quinn), a good-hearted soul (aren’t they…